Some simple tips and concepts students should be aware of when creating powerful compositions in their photography or artwork.

1. Some simple things you need to remember in order to create
better compositions...
COMPOSITION, SPACE & DESIGN

2. If you only remember one thing, make it this! Imagine that your picture
frame is divided into 3 sections, along both sides of the artwork. If you line
up key features of the composition with these lines, your compositions will
instantly start to look better!
THE RULE OF THIRDS

3. You can use the power of lines within your compositions to draw the viewer
into the image, or to encourage the viewer’s eyes to wander around the
artwork. These photos all use strong, dramatic leading lines.
LEADING LINES

4. Allow shapes to completely fill the space within your painting or drawing. This helps
to create a strong impact and draws the viewer’s attention to details.
CROPPING

5. Another way to create effective compositions is to focus on the areas between the
objects (negative space) as much as the objects themselves. In all these
artworks, the artists have emphasized negative space in different ways.
USING ‘NEGATIVE’ SPACE

6. All these photos use a ‘frame within a frame’ to help divide up the image in
interesting ways, creating a tension between the edges of the artwork and
the frame within it.
FRAMES WITHIN FRAMES

7. In these artworks, flowing lines have been heavily used in the compositions to
help create compositions with a sense of life and movement through the
image. This helps to stop artworks looking static and flat.
RHYTHM / FLOW

8. UNUSUAL VIEWPOINTS
All these compositions make dramatic use of unusual viewpoints and angles to
make the viewer look at their subject matter with fresh interest. This can be very
powerful in making a strong impact.

9. Exploit reflective and mirrored surfaces in your compositions to create complex,
lively artworks. Reflections can also be used to set up tensions between
different parts of the image (see the b/w photo above).
REFLECTIONS

10. Think about where you place your ‘horizon line’ – in still lifes, landscapes, even
abstract works! In both these paintings, the artists have used extremely high
horizon lines as a key part of their compositions.
HORIZON LINE

11. A symmetrical composition (left) will generally create an impression of balance,
calm, order and stillness within your work. Using asymmetry, on the other hand,
throws things off balance, creating the impression of movement or tension.
SYMMETRY & ASYMMETRY